Neill Blomkamp's sci-fi thriller Elysium will instead occupy RoboCop's original release date, moving from its original release date of March 1, 2013.

Sony released Blomkamp's first movie District 9 in mid-August 2009, when it grossed $37.4 million on its opening weekend in the US.

District 9 has earned more than $200 million globally, and the studio is thought to have high expectations for Elysium.

[Matt Damon in 'Elysium' - first look image]

Elysium - starring Matt Damon and Jodie Foster - is a tale about a future world where two classes of people exist: a community which lives on a luxurious space station and people who live on a ruined, overcrowded Earth. Damon's character aims to bring equality to both worlds.